Overheard a conversation yesterday about a movie currently being shot on St. Georges Caye. Seems the Coast Guard was involved in transporting the crew and actors (Why?) when about 5:00 am yesterday morning they ran one of their big skiffs into a scuttled barge in front of the bogue. The star and other actors suffered injuries including broken leg(s). Lots of things do not sound right - why was the national coast guard transporting them - how can the coast guard of all people not know about that barge which is in plain view and known to most naval tyros??

responses....

The military everywhere are eager to offer their services to movie makers. They have lots of idle time and equipment and like most people, present company excepted of course, anxious to make a buck and maybe mug for the cameras ;o)

When the first (and last) big-time movie was shot here the BDF folks were fighting to be included in the platoon selected to provide supporting services.

As for our Coast Guard crashing into boats and barges - well nothing strange there.....this is Belize.

Another response...

Individuals lining up to be extras in a movie is very different from a government department (in this case the National Coast Guard) providing transportation or other services to a movie company. Was it done gratis? If so how can the country afford this when we are raising taxes left right and center while freezing wages and cannot pay policemen overtime in a timely manner? If it was fee for service is this a part of the new trend where government is competing with the private sector - on the heels of the Belize City Council taking away the job of grave construction from the private undertaking companies? I fully support a GOB department cashing in for services that the private sector cannot provide e.g. BDF being paid for a platoon to play a cameo role in a march past etc. BUT certainly not in areas which can be serviced by the private sector. What next ? Prison Bus transporting passengers on regular bus routes???

response....

I totally agree with you. Even if the transportation is being paid for, it could have been paid to one of the many private tenders/water taxis.

Maybe what is being produced is a a recruitment video for the Coast Guard, who knows? Yeah right!

Film crew injured as coastguard vessel hits barge

Elton Bennett

As we said earlier, there was an accident on the sea over the weekend. It involved a film crew, the Belize Coastguard and a semi-submerged barge. A few of the people on board the Coastguard’s Boston Whaler were injured and according to Lieutenant Commander Elton Bennett, the cause of the accident is being investigated.

Lt. Commander Elton Bennett, Belize Coastguard

“One of the coast guard vessels moving from Belize City to St. George’s Caye had a collision on a semi submerged barge located on the west side of the Drowned cayes. The vessel was moving along with two other coastguard vessels. We were transporting crew members for a film in Belize, the coastguard is participating in. And unfortunately it was still a bit dark and the captain of the vessel managed to run over the semi submerged object.”

Jose Sanchez

“Was anyone injured in that crash?”

Lt. Commander Elton Bennett

“There were three minor injuries on board. One of the participants in the film received a broken leg and the other one received a broken tooth. And one complained of bruises on his ankle.”

Jose Sanchez

“These were coastguard members or part of the film crew?”

Lt. Commander Elton Bennett

“The injured personnel were part of the film crew. There were no injuries to any of the Coastguard members.”

Jose Sanchez

“Now the Boston Whalers are very expensive vessel donated under the CARSI Program. What damages were made to the vessel and can it be repaired?”

Lt. Commander Elton Bennett

“The damages sustained to the vessels include three damaged royal units in the form of damaged propellers. We don’t know exactly at this point to what extent the power head has been damaged. But so far it indicates no damage; only to the lower unit. And also some scratches to the keel of the vessel. It is repairable so we are doing an inquiry into the accident itself to determine what is the cause of the accident. Was it human error? We are also looking at the cost of repairing the vessel at this time.”

Jose Sanchez

“So for the moment the vessel is moored here at Coastguard Headquarters?”

Lt. Commander Elton Bennett

“Yes it is on dry dock at the Coastguard. The vessel came back on its own from the location of the accident towards this location so it is still moving around.”

Bennett says that the Coastguard has ended all activities with the film company. Although the Boston Whaler was on the compound, and would have been showcased in a movie, permission was not granted to video the vessel in its damaged state.

This is a highly sanitized report - there were multiple broken bones and lost teeth - only a passing remark made about the Coast Guard ending all activities with the film crew - how were they engaged and why? There's more to this than meets the eye - where are the investigative reporters when we need them? As the story noted the boat would have been filmed in the movie but no photographs were allowed after the accident. HMMMMMMMMMMMMM!!!

more comments...

Just points and other questions:

There were two other vessels, were they moving together, which was in the lead, were they running with GPS(if not why not), did any of the other vessels have contact(with each other or the wreck), is the wreck's position in the CG GPS's(if not why not), what was the time of the incident(what time was sunrise), What is the name and rank of the OIC of the mission, what are the names and ranks of the three helmsmen, do all three have appropriate rank and training to skipper/helm the vessels(at least equal to the standards of privately registered vessels), was there a lookout posted(who), who does the wreck belong to, did all persons have on life jackets(high speed at night, what was speed at time of contact(may be in GPS)), was there a working fire extinguisher on board, how long has the wreck been there,is the owner responsible for removing it or marking it, is the owner of the sunken vessel going to be charged or billed for the damages, who is liable for the cost of the injuries, were the injured film crew local or foreign and where are they now, will there be an assessment of damage by a marine assessor and will the value be released?

The helmsman/skipper of the damaged CG vessel and/or the OIC is apparently guilty of causing damage to a vessel and harm to others by careless/negligent operation (proceeding at speed(higher than can allow evasive action, given the visibility) in low visibility in a known hazardous area(obviously the CG would have knowledge of the wreck)), what is the procedure for further investigation, if the damaged vessel was following a vessel with the OIC will the OIC be considered responsible?

These are all very legitimate questions that the reporter may consider in a follow-up interview; there would be many more questions in the vessel could be seen. Is the hull damage just to the gelcoat, is it into the mat or roving, was the hull penetrated, prop damage, shaft damaged/bent, engine skeg damaged, does "foot" have to be replaced, was transom damaged as engines kicked up and slammed back down under power, was the helmsman thrown from the helm, was helmsman wearing a power shut-off lanyard, did power shut down or did vessel continue to run?

Wow, there are so many things wrong with this. Like there are plenty of private boats that could be contracted for transport. The CG should probably have marked and known of a danger to navigation(remember they capsized a boat last year). As a former movie producer I'm curious as to what the project is...

Man Injured In Coast Guard Accident Explains

Over the weekend there was a boat accident on the sea that involved a Belize Coastguard Boston Whaler vessel and a semi submerged barge.

The accident happened around 5:20 on Saturday morning between St George's Caye and Drowned Caye. The Coastguard vessel was transporting a Film Crew to St George's Caye when it crashed into the semi submerged barge. Roughly about 22 passengers were onboard, 3 of who were coast guard officers.

Several persons were injured including the film's lead actor and co-producer Corin Nemec. Nemec received a broken leg and was transported to the Medical Associate's Hospital in Belize were he had to receive emergency surgery. He is tonight recovering and spoke with 7news from his hospital bed.

He told us his crew has been filming out at St George's Caye for a few days and that the Belize Coastguard was a part of the movie storyline. But on that day he says they were going too fast and the boat driver didn't see the wreck that lay ahead:

Corin Nemec - Injured In Boat Accident"But, we hit the sinking barge, and that is what filled the boat to one side immediately with an enormous amount of force, and that threw me into the side of the boat where I shattered my femur in 3 places. It was the doctor here on call, who has been amazing, Doctor Smith, he said that it's the worst break that he's had to deal with, and I lost over half of the blood in my body during they trauma, and during the operation, and I still don't have the right blood count yet. I still am getting more blood transfusions later today, so that's been very scary; the whole event was very scary. Everybody onboard that boat, including the gentlemen working for the Coast Guard, everyone is lucky to be alive. I have not been approached by anyone from either the Port Authority, or the Coast Guard, or Police. Neither has anyone else who was on the boat, to my knowledge - I've spoken with many of them; they came by to see how I am doing - there have been on one. No one has asked me anything. You are the first people to have asked me anything. I don't know about any kind of legal recourse or anything like that. I am just trying to deal with the traumatic nature of it. It was one of the first times in my life where I didn't actually didn't think I was going to survive something. The one thing was probably most scary is that none of us were equipped with life vests. None of us were given life vests when were on the boats any of the days when we were travelling. So, if the boat had flipped, that was another thing I'd been concerned about for a couple of days. I just assumed that this must just be such a normal drive back and forth to these locations that no one is concerned about the safety of the individuals on the boats, so they didn't give us life vests. When I questioned it, it was just a 'Oh no, this is just a short little 5-mile drive out there and everything.' And I can only assume that people are operating the way that they are supposed to operating."

The Coastguard has ended all activities with the film company and says that the accident is being investigated.

My instincts tell me that there will be a suit over this and the Bze CG does not have it's ass covered very well. Do a search for the injured guy(Corin Nemec) and you'll see that every Hollywood atty will be jumping on this one. My instincts sort of tell me that some CG folks were getting a few extra $$ for going on patrol, notice they immediately ended operations on the mission. There needs to be a Board of Inquiry(or the Bze equivalent), and the OIC needs to do some serious answering!

The contract almost certainly includes equipment other than just the boat. I would also not be surprised that a 37' Justice alone, with the modifications the government will likely require, would retail for more than $600,000. After all, the basic 37' Outrage alone is well north of $450,000.

Equipment
In 2007, the Coast Guard Service has eight boats in commission. There are no aircraft; for air searches the Coast Guard Service relies on the Belize Defence Force.

The Belize Coast Guard Service will receive several fast boats from the United States Coast Guard in 2008. These boats will have a maximum speed of 60 to 65 miles per hour (100 to 108 km/h).

On April 2010, the Coast Guard received two Boston Whaler Justice 37' patrol boats. Shortly they will receive an additional "Justice" and two Secure All-around Flotation Equipped (SAFE) boats. [5]

On November 2011, the Coast Guard received two Boston Whaler Outrage Justice Series boats, two SAFE Defender Class boats, two F-550 Ford trucks, and a 40-foot container filled with spare parts. [6][7]

While he is going to be fine in time, this type of news is the type we hate to report.

According to TMZ, actor Corin Nemec — who portrayed “Jonas Quinn”, the Kelownan scientist from Langara and eventual SG-1 team member in Season Six of the series — is recovering from emergency surgery after shattering his leg in multiple places in a boating accident this past weekend. Nemec, who was in Belize shooting a film (presumably a production headed for Syfy) called Poseidon Rex, was on board a Coast Guard vessel that crashed violently into a partially submerged barge.

“We hit the sinking barge … with an enormous amount of force,” Nemec told a local reporter in Belize. “[And] that threw me into the side of the boat where I shattered my femur in three places.”

Nemec reportedly lost massive quantities of blood, over half of what was in his body. He was rushed to a nearby hospital for emergency surgery and required multiple blood transfusions before finally stabilizing.

“Everyone on board that boat, including the gentlemen working for the Coast Guard … everyone is lucky to be alive,” Nemec said.

While the actor recuperates, you can send him your well-wishes for a speedy recovery on Twitter at@iamcorinnemec.